3 TESTS

“Nothing is certain but death and taxes.” Benjamin Franklin wrote those words in 1789. Of course, a wise man like Franklin knew that many other things are also certain. We, as Christians, know that there are many certainties. Of spiritual truth, we should not be afraid to say, “We know!” In fact, the word know occurs thirty-nine times in John’s brief letter and eight times in this closing chapter.

A spiritual life is built on the divine certainties found in Jesus Christ. The world may accuse the Christian of being proud and dogmatic, but this does not keep us from saying, “we know!” In these closing verses of John’s letter, we find three tests, love, obedience, and faith, to determine whether we have genuine faith in God or not.

Faith is such a vital matter to the children of God that it must needs be put to the test, first in order to prove that it is genuine, and second to purge and strengthen it.

Philip Mauro; D. Edmond Hiebert

Faith is the first test.

Verse 1 joins the two great ingredients of New Testament Christianity, faith and love, together. As soon as John has defined the core belief that Jesus is the Christ as the means by which the new birth is brought about, he immediately moves into the expression and proof of faith’s existence and genuineness, love for God and for his children. To the apostle, these two components of Christian reality are as inseparable as two sides of the same coin. Faith that does not lead to love is meaningless. Love that is not based on faith is powerless.

For Christians neither faith nor love is an optional extra; they are the twin pillars on which all true Christian experience rest. Everyone who does such-and-such is a phrase that includes all who satisfy the given condition (in this case all who believe that Jesus is the Christ), and excludes everyone else. It is designed both to increase the assurance of the true Christian and also to exclude all those who would try to climb into the sheep pen some other way than by entering through the only door, which is Christ (Jn. 10:1–9).

There is a widespread distrust of what used to be called historical facts. How can we know anything, with certainty, about the past? We can only look through our own culturally tinted spectacles and put an interpretative gloss on the people and events we think we perceive.

Christians believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God. That is not just an article of faith, it is the faith. It is this alone that makes a person a Christian. We need to be perfectly clear that whatever else an individual may claim to believe or whatever other position may be held, if a man or woman does not believe that Jesus is the Son of God, he or she cannot have been born of God and cannot be called a Christian.

From the very beginning of the church on the day of Pentecost, this was the content of the apostolic faith and gospel message: ‘God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ’ (Acts 2:36).

John’s view of faith is not believing against hope but exercising faith so that we know we have eternal life.

If our faith is not in the present tense it will never be able to stand the test of the days in which we live.

Anonymous

Love Test

Doctrinal excellence, a bold faith, evangelistic fervor, and a generous hand are all good things. However, they are not what matters most to God. The one thing that He desires more than anything else is that we love Him. Without love for God, even the good things we do have no value in His eyes.

After passing the test of faith, it will then lead us to other tests of love and obedience. Last week I spent a lot of time dealing with love and the test of that love. I won’t spend too much time on that today.

The new birth of regeneration brings us into a relationship with God as Father. This Father first loved us and now we love Him (4:19) for who He is and what He has done for us in Christ (4:10). However, we not only love the Father, we also love the family the Father is building. We will love our brothers and sisters, “the one[s] born of Him” (5:1). But John then makes an interesting statement in verse 2 that at first seems out of order. He says we can “know that we love God’s children when we love God and obey His commands.”

Our love for others is the natural complement and companion to my “first love” for God. When we love God, we will keep His commands. And keeping His commands involves loving others, His daughters and sons in particular. Obeying the command to love one another will not be burdensome. It will be a joy and a delight because the new birth makes it the natural thing to do. And our love for the Father inspires and motivates us to love those He loves and to love them as He loves us.

Our Lord told His disciples that love and obedience were organically united. The final test of love is obedience.

A. W. Tozer

Obedience Test

John returns to the theme of obedience to the commands of God. Though he knew that loving God and obeying God were distinguishable, he also knew that they were inseparable (John 14:15). He adds a new perspective on obedience that I believe is liberating. It is found at the end of verse 3, where he says that God’s commands “are not a burden.” How does that work itself out?

Christian obedience is unlike every other kind of obedience. It is not the obedience of slaves or soldiers, but essentially the obedience of lovers who know, love and trust the person who issues the commands.

John Stott

John is saying that in the new birth I receive a new nature. With this new nature comes new affections, passions, treasures, and values. Because I now love God instead of hating Him, I treasure and value Him above everyone and everything else. And because I treasure and value Him above everyone and everything else, I delight in obeying Him.

Now I find His commands not to be a burden, but a blessing. They are not a chore; they are a delight. “What you desire to do with your whole heart is not burdensome to do.” My heart desires to love and obey my Lord.

The best measure of a spiritual life is not its ecstasies but its obedience.

Oswald Chambers

In the Psalms we repeatedly find the joyful testimonies of regenerate hearts as they sing of their joy in doing the will of the Lord and obeying His commands.

How happy is the man who does not follow the advice of the wicked or take the path of sinners or join a group of mockers! Instead, his delight is in the Lord’s instruction, and he meditates on it day and night.

(Ps 1:1–2)

Take delight in the Lord, and He will give you your heart’s desires. (Ps 37:4)

I delight to do Your will, my God; Your instruction lives within me. (Ps 40:8)

Hallelujah! Happy is the man who fears the Lord, taking great delight in His commands. (Ps 112:1)

I rejoice in the way revealed by Your decrees as much as in all riches. (Ps 119:14)

I will delight in Your statutes; I will not forget Your word. (Ps 119:16)

Your decrees are my delight and my counselors. (Ps 119:24)

Help me stay on the path of Your commands, for I take pleasure in it. (Ps 119:35)

Loving God rightly is not just external behavior and outward obedience. It is a longing to do His will from the heart, out of gospel gratitude for who He is and what He has done for us in Jesus. It is not an “I have to” obedience. It is an “I want to” obedience. I love to obey this King!

As Christians, our love for God is manifested through our obedience to His word. We cannot claim to love God and yet live in disobedience.

The proof of real saving faith is a persistent mindset to obey what Jesus has taught us in his Word, the Bible.

Anonymous

The very first test given to a newborn in the delivery room is called the Apgar score. The test was designed to quickly evaluate a newborn’s physical condition after delivery and to determine any immediate need for extra medical or emergency care. It measures things like muscle tone, heart rate, reflexes, skin color, and breathing rate.

A true child of God will have a spiritual Apgar score. We could probably come up with more, but John gives us three vital signs of the new birth: faith in Jesus Christ, love for others, and obedience to God’s commandments.

If you claim to be born again, you may want to check your spiritual Apgar score. If the vital signs of new life in Christ are not there, you need to get down on your knees and plead with God to cause you “to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” (1 Pet. 1:3).

If you pass these three tests of faith, love, and obedience, you can be confident that you have eternal life. This knowledge brings us peace and assurance in our faith. Therefore, let us strive to love God and others, obey His commands, and accept the truth of who Jesus is. May God bless us all. Amen.